


Hiraeth

by PenumbraMarred



Category: NADDPOD - Fandom, Not Another D&D Podcast
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-05-07
Updated: 2019-05-07
Packaged: 2020-02-27 12:03:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 1,472
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18738631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PenumbraMarred/pseuds/PenumbraMarred
Summary: It's been quite a few years since Beverly and Hardwon died, but no ones accusing Moonshine of having moved on in a healthy way.





	1. The Preview

Hiraeth- n. a homesickness for a home you cannot return to  
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Preview:  
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Moonshine and Beverly were crying as they stood back to back. Bev’s sword was shining into the darkness, and a cloud of arcane energy (weaker than she would have liked) swirled around her hands. They had really gotten themselves into it this time, and if she was being honest, she didn’t know if they were going to make it out. Hardwon was already dead. She had felt it through her fungal network. Not that there weren’t ways to bring a person back, but at least one of them had to still be alive at the end of this.  


The Chosen has stopped their onslaught for just a moment. There were so many of them, leering at the two friends. Moonshine knew they had probably lost. She felt sorrow for Bev. It couldn’t be easy to die so young. He’d never get to have his fairy tale ending. She felt sorrow for herself. She was going to die here, in a dark underground cavern. Away from her Mee Maw, and nowhere near her beloved Crick. There wasn’t even a goddamn mushroom in sight. At least Paw Paw wasn’t here. She had left him with Balnor on a scouting mission. She hoped they would have enough sense to not come looking for them.  


Their reprieve seemed to have come to an end. The Chosen descended. She shot a bolt of lightening through the crowd and saw a few of them drop. But, she’d cast a lot that day, and had a bad feeling that might be her last. She saw, more than felt, a sword stab through into her side. “Wow, gross,” she thought. She reached up and chill-touched the offending soldier. He died with disgust for her in his eyes. She tried to call lightening again, but as she had feared, the spell sputtered and died in her hands. For the first time she felt real fear shoot through her body.  


“Hey Bev?” She shouted over her shoulder.  


“Yeah, Moonshine?” Bev panted back.  


“I love you a lot kid,” Moonshine said.  


“I love you too Moonshine,” she heard back. She smiled. She would die for that boy. And it really seemed like she was about to. She drew her sword, and frankly, did her best to murder as many of the people in front of her as she could. They fought for a long time… maybe… she didn’t really know, but it sure felt like it. Her heart broke when she felt Beverly die. She didn’t turn around, but the network told her what she would see. She hacked, and she slashed, and she screamed at them. They had killed her friends. They killed Hardwon. And they killed Beverly. And they were going to kill her. She felt the hatred of them, deep and black and red hot, growing in her stomach. She felt its burn make its way through her body, until everything she was, was anger.  


Everything went white. And when she woke, everything was different.


	2. Alanis Comes to Visit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Moonshine is coping well and healthily...

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Present Day:  
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The sun filtered through tattered curtains, highlighting random spots along the floor of a ramshackle hut. A lump in the corner shifted under a blanket. A possum face suddenly poked out of the bottom left corner. Sniffing wildly, it slid bodily onto the floor with a thud. After a quick pause for another round of frantic sniffing, it set off for the door. Pushing past the curtained door, it made its way, still sniffing, into the sunshine.  


“Hey Paw Paw,” came a voice from who he was looking for. He scurried over, reeting happily, and clawed his way up onto her lap. Snuggling into where there once was overalls, but now was only a black cloak draped over a kind of scratchy (if he were being honest), dark shirt. But the cloak held the warmth well enough, and though he missed the denim, he loved his person more than anyone else in the world and was willing to overlook this slight against him. After only a moment of peace, a puff of smoke signaled the arrival of someone new, but Paw Paw thought he recognized her, and Moe didn’t seem to mind too much, so he snuggled down for the first of his many morning naps.  


The pervasive smell of Hill Home Hash signified the arrival of Alanis. Wafting away the purple smoke that came with her arrival Alanis pulled out a chair at the table, and sat down next to the other elf. She pulled out a pipe and took a hit, before addressing the younger girl.  


“Hey Moonie, how you been?” she sort of coughed out around the smoke.  


“Don’t call me that,” the girl snapped, “That’s not my name anymore.”  


“Oh right, oh right, what was it again? Helga?” asked Alanis, waving her hand around a bit.  


“Not exactly,” bristled the girl, “It’s Hiraeth.”  


“Right, cool, cool,” Alanis trailed off to take another hit, “You want a drag kiddo?”  


“I’m a hundred- and fifteen-years old Alanis, I’m not a “kiddo”,” Hiraeth said, “Why are you here?”  


“Oh you know, just checking up on you, I promised your mother I would, you know,” Alanis said, leaning forward and making eye contact with Hiraeth.  


“I’m not a child,” Hiraeth muttered, hating how weak and petulant she sounded, and looked down at Paw Paw, uncomfortable under the older girl’s searching gaze.  


“Yeah, I hear you Sis,” placated Alanis, “I really do, but it doesn’t strike confidence into the hearts of the people who love you when you move far away and live in a hut with your possum.” There was silence for a moment. “Hiraeth, please look at me.” And she did, she looked up at her again, and it hurt Alanis to see the pain swirling in the girl’s eyes. She wasn’t the same elf she used to be, the world had chewed her up and spit her out. She missed the Moonshine she had known. “Please, love, its been a long time since they died and—” but she didn’t get any farther, because Hiraeth had dropped her gaze to her possum again.  


“Go away,” She interrupted. And Alanis knew that she would get no farther with the girl. They had been down this path before, Hiraeth would ignore anyone who had upset her, and though Alanis was a powerful witch she was not inclined to make Hiraeth do anything she didn’t want to. She had been hurt too much already, plus, was a powerful druid in her own right.  


“Alright kiddo, just know that there are people that love you a lot and are worried about you, if you ever need anything, anything at all you know where to find me,” and with that, Alanis vanished in the same puff of purple smoke that signaled her arrival. Hiraeth personally thought it wasn’t necessary but rather a splash of personal flair. Sighing, she stood up, cradling her conked out possum under her arm.  


She knew it had been a long time since they died. But she didn’t know what they wanted her to do. She couldn’t do anything. It hurt too much. Everything hurt all the damn time and goddammit she missed her friends. She felt the familiar burn of tears behind her eyes and they snaked their way down her cheeks. Choking back a sob, she tried desperately to stem the flow of tears. She was both glad and remorseful that Alanis had left. It was nice to have some humanoid company, but it also hurt. She knew it would be a couple years at least until the older girl returned, and she resolved to let her stick around a little longer next time. Her Mee Maw would drop by around Crickmas time, but as it was mid-spring, that wasn’t for many months yet.  


“Whatever,” she thought to herself, “I’m an adult and I don’t need anyone but Paw Paw…… Goddammit I miss them.” The thought came and went before she could stop it, and her heart twinged in pain. She closed her eyes for a long moment, then turned and went back inside. Looking around her one room, it wasn’t exactly glamorous, but she didn’t need or frankly, deserve, more. Shedding the cloak off onto a chair, she flopped onto the bed. She settled Paw Paw on her stomach. She ran her pointer finger along his sweet, soft fuzzy face and marveled at his ability to sleep through anything. She sighed again and flopped her head back on the pillow and studied her ceiling. It was made of palm fronds held together with mud. She had made it by hand in the early days. She shut her eyes tightly and turned onto her side, curled around Paw Paw and tried to shove all thoughts out of her mind.


End file.
